Tuesday, November 4, 2008

Congratulations, America!

What an amazing day for our country. I had some colleagues and friends over to watch the returns come in, and it was a moving experience.


I am very proud, very optimistic, and very hopeful. I know the road ahead will be difficult, but finally, it is a road that plausibly leads somewhere better than where we find ourselves now.

I thought McCain's concession speech was appropriate to the moment, and I hope he will be willing to work with President-elect Obama. 

I also hope and trust that President-elect Obama will move to implement the policies on which he campaigned. Some details will need adjusting, but the tapestry he proposed is what he should hang on the wall.

I want to say one other thing. I came to support Barack Obama for President of the United States of America because he convinced me he is a true progressive, one with the right policy and political instincts. I didn't support him because he is black, or because it is time for a black President. Indeed, President-elect Obama is black, and it is long past time for a black person's run for the presidency to be considered serious regardless of his or her race. But President-elect Obama's race was always beside the point for me. A wonderful bonus, and now, a wonderful statement about Progress In America. 

But I gravitated to Barack Obama because he was the best candidate. Period.

Congratulations, America: finally, you picked the right candidate.

8 comments:

Tracy said...

Very well said. I couldn't agree more.

Anonymous said...

jonah...

congratulations to us all. many many thanks for all your sustained efforts and insights!

i have regularly read your blog to clarify issues from health care costs to who the economists were supporting mccain. we used your words for talking points for persuasive canvassing in virgina, pennsylvania, and maryland so you should know they reached an exponential number of people! we also pointed many people to this site for fact checking on the economy, the advisor lists, and the tax calculators.

and i do hope you keep on blogging your news + views on all things economic. we have a lot to sort out still...

Jonah B. Gelbach said...

thanks for the kind words. it means a lot to know that we had an effect on the ground!

we're still talking about how/whether to continue with the site. hopefully we can do something!

jonah

Anonymous said...

Don,
I'm not sure what your plans are for the blog, but you did a great job. Your blog was a welcome oasis in a desert full of misinformation about Obama's economic plan. It was unbelievable what was said about him and his plan, especially on local talk radio stations. I'm from a red state, Tennessee, and it is easy to see why it went to McCain by a large margin. If all I heard was what the vast majority of people in my area heard, I would have voted for McCain also. Thanks again,
glh

donna said...

Thanks for all your hard work, here. Forwarded your articles to many people.

I've been smiling all day...

Anonymous said...

YEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!


I hope to see some economists from this site in the CEA in an Obama administration!

Don Pedro said...

Thanks so much to everyone for their words of appreciation. It means so much to us to know that our efforts here made a difference!

unavailable man said...

Will Obama really enact policies that are universally accepted as ones that will raise unemployment?


I've never received a job from a poor person.